Name: 'The truth about Ami', chapter 3
Author: Cony
E-mail: rubi@riemann.mat.puc.cl
Rated: PG-13 (some swearing and where did the lemon go?. Well, it's more or
less on chapter 8, but it's there, so . . .)
        Stuff at bottom.

The Senshi screamed all in unison as they saw their friend Mercury jump off
the cliff. But, they noticed, there's was a scream louder than all of them
put together . . . a manly scream . . . a scream of agony. They all closed
their mouthes, and looked closely at the edge of the cliff. They saw as a
shadow jumped to the edge, and kneeled on it. They saw a long and thin
thing that stretched out of it, and dissapeared on the other side. Their
worries forgotten, the tried to identify whatever was there, appearing to
be holding something.

Tuxedo Kamen thought to himself: . His thoughts were interrupted, as the shadow stood
up, and his arm reappeared, another black thing hanging from it. They all
gasped in surprise as they saw a light-blue flash, and knew it was Mercury.
"MERCURY!", they yelled, and ran to the figure. As they did, they saw as the
shadow took their friend, and held her against his body. Only then did they
notice the rain had stopped.

The clouds on the sky had started clearing, and a crescent moon appeared on
the sky. It seemed to shine directly over the figure, and only then did they
see who, or better said, what, it was. A young man, with brownish hair, and
the most beautiful pair of green eyes they had seen on their entire life. He
was wearing a pair of jeans, and a white T-shirt. He was wet, and the shirt
clunged to his chest, showing a muscular frame, which was strong enough to
defeat four men, but not bulky. They saw as he was hugging Mercury, cleaning
her face from the rain water. His face was very near to her, and his eyes
scanned her, trying to find any trace of wounds. Also, his mouth was moving,
as if he was whispering things into her ear, trying to soothe her.

Then, he did something that startled them the most. He moved her head,
leaving her neck to the full view. He seemed to search for something,
though there was nothing there. At least, for the Senshi and Tuxedo Kamen
to see. But, he seemed to be sure of what he was looking for, and found it
at last. With his index and middle finger, he pressed a spot on her neck,
which made her whole body stiffen, and seem to enlarge. Then, he kissed
her. Directly on the lips. As their mouthes made contact, they heard a
sizzling sound. It was very low at first, but it kept increasing, until it
was so loud they had to cover their ears. But, that didn't stop them to
look at what was going on. They saw as Mercury's body became surrounded by
darkness. A black blur engulfed her. But, the kiss kept going on. The black
cloud seemed to concentrate on her face, then on her mouth, and at last, a
thundering explosion swept through the air.

They all covered their eyes, and were blinded for a few moments. A light
stronger than any of them had ever seen completely enveloped the cliff, and
they had to close their eyes tight. When they could see again, they saw a
strange picture. Mercury was still unconcious, hanging loosely of the
stranger's arm. But, he was with his hand on his mouth. His index finger and
his thumb were barely inside his lips; it looked like if he was tapping his
teeth. Then, carefully, he seemed to pick something from inside, and then
took his hand out. They were expecting anything, but weren't prepared for
what came next. He was holding a black crystal on his hand. It was a tiny,
not bigger than his little finger. But, it shone and crackled with evil
energy. It looked like a fish taken out of water. It crackled and swirled
black evil energy, giving it the aspect of a dying enemy.

They saw as the stranger whispered something, which Mars could have sworn
was: "You'll hurt no more". Then, he quickly closed his hand, and a
shattering sound was heard, as if a glass had broken. Then, he opened his
hand, and in it there was nothing, but pieces of shattered glass. The wind
blew them away, and they all could feel as the evil energy was blown away
too. The man turned his gaze back to Mercury who was still fainted on his
arms, and when he was sure she was alright, he smiled for the first time,
and looked at them: "She scared the hell out of me" were the first words he
spoke.

Sailor Moon gasped, and said: "Who . . . who are you?. What did you just
do?. What relation do you have with Mercury?". They saw as the stranger
smiled, and said: "Wow wow, Tsukino-san. One question at a time". Five jaws
stretched at the point of breaking, as their leader's true name was
revealed. "How . . . How do you know her real name?", asked Jupiter, her
fist clenching in an unconscious move. "Hey, take it easy Kino-san. I wish
no harm to you, as you are Reiko's friends. Oh, I believe you know her as
Ami, don't you?". Wide eyes were the only answer he got. "Well, I bet you
want some answers, don't you?. But, they'll have to wait. I must take her
to a hospital, she's badly injured, specially on her right foot. I think
she broke it".

"Broke it?. How can it be broken?. She jumped more than any of us have ever
done, at
amazing speed, and with such quick movements I thought she wasn't human!",
said Venus. They all saw as a smile which looked like one of pride appeared
on the stranger's face. "I taught her that". "What?. You taught her?. Who
are you?". A hundred and a million questions popped on every Senshi's head,
but the man waved his hand. "I already told you. Everything on it's proper
time. All you need to know now is that my name is Inoue Hiroshi. Now, I'm
going to the hospital. She needs medical attention urgently. We'll meet at
the Tokyo Central Hospital". "What do you mean with 'we'll meet'?. Aren't
you coming with us?", asked Mars, a puzzled look on her face.

"No. I can reach the hospital much faster by my own methods. Besides,
you've got to detransform before you get there. Meet you there!". Then,
Hiroshi hugged Mercury closer, and in a flash of white light, they were
gone. Everone blinked several times before realising they had really left.
"Man, how did he do that?", asked Tuxedo Kamen, as he changed back to
Mamoru. "What I'm really wondering is where did Ami-chan met such a gorgeous
guy like that" wondered Venus aloud. A big sweatdrop appeared on everyone's
foreheads, and a unison groan was heard. But, they were stopped by their
transformations returning back to normal. Usagi, Mamoru, Rei, Minako and
Makoto stood on the cliff, where just some seconds ago the warriors of love
and justice were.

Without anymore words, they ran to the hospital, longing to arrive soon, so
their questions could be answered . . . .

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

They were huffing and panting heavily as they reached the front door of the
Tokyo Central Hospital. The window door slid noiselessly at their running,
and they reached the reception quickly. They made quite an espectacle, but
they didn't care. Mamoru, being the older one, took the word. "Excuse me
Miss", he said, talking to the surprised receptionist, "can you help us?".
The woman took her glasses and put them on. She looked at them carefully,
as if she was scanning them. They seemed to pass the test, because she then
said: "Yes,what can I do for you?". Mamoru felt as the girls sighed in
relief behind him, and continued: "We were wondering if you could tell us
if a girl named Mizuno Ami entered this hospital some time ago?". The
receptionist turned to her computer, but before typing anything, asked:
"Are you relatives of her?". Mamoru shifted uncomfortably, without knowing
what to say.

That's when Usagi entered. "We aren't Miss. But she's our best friend.
Could we please at least see her?". She adopted her already pattented
Usagi-cute-look, and added some sobs to it. The receptionist's heart
melted, and she said: "Ok. But only for a minute. Let's see. What did you
say was her name?". "Mizuno Ami", answered Mamoru. The woman pressed some
buttons on her key-board, and mumbled: "Hmm, Mizuno, Mizuno . . . Masano . .
. Mahon . . . Mikami . . . Moshase . . . I'm sorry, but there's no Mizuno
Ami registered". "What?. No Mizuno?. That can't be!. Please check again
Miss", said Makoto, a worried look on her face. What if this Hiroshi was a
pervert?. Where could he have taken Ami?. But his eyes weren't evil . . .
they were strange, but not evil.

The woman checked again, and nodded her head. "I'm sorry. There's no Mizuno
Ami". Minako asked, still unsure: "Everyone who enters this hospital is
registered there, right?". "Indeed. There's no one in this hospital that
doesn't have her/his name in this file". Then, an idea in Rei's head
clicked. "Excuse me Miss. Could you please look for Suiseki Reiko?". The
rest of the group looked at her, first with a questioning look, then
undertanding. A strange look crossed through the woman's face, but said
nothing. "Let me see. Suiseki, Suiseki . . . Yes, here she is. She entered
the hospital about thirty minutes ago. She had a severe wound on her right
foot, and was extremely pale. According to what it says here, she was taken
into surgery". "NANI??. SURGERY??". "Calm down. She wasn't in any mortal
danger, though it looked like she had been drained of all her energy, and
there was a small itch on her neck. The doctors couldn't figure out what it
was".

Makoto breathed deeply, and asked: "Where is she now?". "On room 647. But,
she's still unconscious by the antibiotics the doctors gave her. Someone is
whith her though, a young man. He said his name was Inoue Hiroshi. Do you
know him?. Hey . . . where are you?". The receptionist leaned off her desk,
trying to see where those strange young teens had gone . . . the only thing
she could see was a sliding door, which looked like it had being hit by an
earthquake, and was waving back and forth, interrupting the quietness of
the health center . . .

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Hiroshi sat quietly by Reiko's side, resting his hand over her own. He was
thinking . . . thinking about so many things . . . yet, all focused on one
simple subject . . . the girl sleeping next to him. He remembered when they
used to work together, and longing for the old times came to him. She
looked so helpless in there . . . so easy to kill . . . but he would
protect her, even if it took his life . . . again. She was pale, part for
the energy drain he had made her suffer and part for the emotional stress
she went through. As he scrolled his view up and down her, he made a mental
note: . She was
paler, and thinner. "It must have been all these years of having to act like
someone else", he thought, taking her hand on her own.

.

Then, he heard running on the hallway and a few puffs and huffs. He smiled,
and leaned forward to whisper in her ear: "Your friends are here". Just as
he was retreating, the door bursted open, and the group of girls and the
young man were there, panting on the door frame. "Welcome", he said,
standing up, "It didn't took you as long as I thought to arrive". Mamoru
regained his breath, and asked: "We . . . we need some answers". "Come in.
I know you do. Just sit down, and I'll be able to explain everything to
you". The girls entered one by one, gave a quick look at their friend lying
on the bed, and sat on the four chairs which were inside the room, as
Mamoru leaned against the back wall. Hiroshi waited for them to finish, and
said: "So?". Usagi went first. "Who are you?. And this time, I want more
than your name".

He smiled, and answered: "My name is Inoue Hiroshi. I'm 22 years old, was
born here in Tokyo, I'm an orphan and I live on my own on the south part of
the city. Is that alright?". "Much better", said Usagi, her confidence
returning. No one who had evil intentions could talk like that, less had
taken an injured enemy to a hospital. "What relation do you have with
Ami-chan?", asked Rei.

"Ami?. Oh, you mean Reiko. Because that'a her real name, you know?. Well, I
can say we were partners some time ago". "Partners?. In what?", insisted
Rei, still not sure if she could trust this stranger. She couldn't feel
evil vibes from him, but that didn't mean anything. She had failed other
times, and they had costed them a lot. She saw as Hiroshi's eyes darkened a
bit, and answered: "In a job we had together. If you want, I can tell you
about it, but you'll have to swear never ever tell anyone about it". "We
do", they all said in unison. "Ok, but let's see if anyone has any questions
left". Mamoru raised his hand, and asked: "How did you do that
flashy-dissapearence trick on the cliff?".

Hiroshi grinned, and answered: "Ah, that. Pretty simple. Magic. You're not
the only ones with power in this world you know?. It's just that you seem
to be far more popular than we do". "We?. Who's we?", asked Minako. "Don't
worry, everything will come clear when I tell you what happened four years
ago, in September 1992. But, wait. You need to see this before I continue".
He lifted his hand, and searched in his pocket. After a little bit of
wriggling, he took his hand out, and showed it to them. It was the pendant.
"Does any of you recognize this?", he asked, waving it in front of every of
their faces.

Minako jumped, and said: "Yes!. I found it at her house, tonight. I believe
inside there's a picture isn't it?". "She showed it to you?", asked
Hiroshi, a puzzled look on his face. "No, well . . . actually I kinda
started browsing through her room while she wasn't looking, and I found
it". Everyone groaned, and a big sweatdrop appeared on Hiroshi's face.
"Well then, Aino-san, consider yourself lucky for still being alive. Did
she tell you who this was?", he finished, as he opened the pendant, and let
everyone take a good look at the picture inside it. "She told me it was her
twin sister, which had dies four years ago". "WHAT??" yelled the Senshi,
"Ami . . . I mean Reiko-chan had a twin sister??". Mamoru took the pendant,
and looked at it closely. "To say the truth, she does look a lot like the
girl in the bed, don't you think?".

A giggle interrupted him. He turned around, and saw Hiroshi, who has
laughing quietly. "What's so funny?", he asked, a bit angry. This guy
wasn't much older (if he was) than he, and he had no right to laugh at him
like that. "Good girl. That was an amazingly good explanation. Not even I
could have thought of something better. Twins . . . who wouldn't have
believed that?". Minako asked: "You mean it's not true?". "Of course not.
Reiko-chan never had a sister, less a twin. The one in the picture is Reiko
herself".

"What??", said an almost fainting group of girls, and a guy with a big
headache by now. "She had long hair?", asked Rei, trying to make a picture
of Ami with long hair on her mind. "Yes. Very long, and really pretty too.
She wore it on a ponytail, longer than yours, Kino-san". The brunnette
looked surprised. "Longer than mine?. And I that thought Ami-chan was born
with short hair . . .". "Can I give you a good advice?. This goes for all
of you", said Hiroshi, a twinkle of sarcasm in his voice. "What?", answered
Usagi, who had been really quiet, trying to get all this new info on her
brain. "Never, ever, call her Ami again. She gets a fit inmediatly, and
it's very difficult if not impossible to stop her when she's angry. Call
her by her true name, Reiko".

"So she wasn't crazy when she started beating me", wondered Makoto aloud.
"Well, I should start now. As I had said, all this story began four years
ago, in September of 1992 . . ."

To be continued . . .

Author notes:
        See?. Told ya'!. Explaining is starting to come!. Next chapter will
erase any doubt you may have, 'cause finally we'll get to now what's the
dark secret in Ami's life. Or shall we call her Reiko?.
        E-mail as much as you can, I'mm be waiting for you!. Remember, my
adress is rubi@riemann.mat.puc.cl . I will be waiting for you!. A thousand
and million thanks to everyone who have aledy e-mailed to me, I'm so
grateful
. . . it's for you guys I'm writing for . . . anyway, if you happen to be
Sailor Eternia, or if you know her, please, PLEASE, e-mail me, it's
URGENT!!.
She wrote to me, a very nice mail BTW, and when I tried to reply to her, the
server just kept kicking me off . . . so, please Sailor Eternia, I didn't
answer you because I couldn't . . . and to all the rest of you (I'm so
excited!. Five, FIVE people wrote to me!!. Can you believe it?. Five people
around the world liked this!), thanxs so much for your support, I'll try my
best to make this work!. .

    ---------------------------------------------------------------------
Name: 'The truth about Ami', chapter 4
Author: Coni
E-mail adress: rubi@riemann.mat.puc.cl
Rated: PG-13 (Some bad words and . . . no, the small bit of lemon I've been
talking about doesn't appear yet!. it isn't a leamon anyway, just some
insinuation of what a couple in love would do if they were alone on a
room . . .. But it will appear, I promise!)

        Stuff at bottom.

September 10th, 1992:

"Bye, Reiko-chan", said a girl, as she waved to her friend. The girl
adressed as Reiko turned around, her long ponytail swaying along with her.
"By Hikaru-chan, see ya tomorrow!", she answered, as she waved her hand in
farewell. She smiled, her pearl white teeth shinning with sunlight. Her
life was perfect. Just today, at school, they had delivered the scores of
the last exam they had had, and Reiko had a round and perfect 100 percent
on her school bag. And to make things better, today was her birthday.
September the 10th, today she was 15 years old. Back at school, her locker
was filled with still-to-be-opened packages, which she had received from
her many friends. She knew nothing could make this day better, and smiled
as she walked towards her house.

Not knowing why, she had taken a different path to her home. She thought it
was because she wanted to be alone for awhile, and if she walked the same
way she always did, she would have to do it with her best friend, Hikaru.
She hummed a song, which she had heard this morning, and had kept running
around her head for all day long. She looked around, and saw she was near
the Tokyo Central Park. It had been a long time since she had come to this
place, and it had some very good memories. She recalled the camping sesion
she had made with Hikaru, and laughed quietly as she remembered it.  were her thoughts
as she continued her walking.

Without even noticing it, she had reached the end of the park. The streets
started again, and she sighed. She wanted to continue like this, between
nature and peace, but she knew that she had to go home. Her mother was
expecting her, so they could go ogether and do some shopping. The idea of
going to the mall and to get the stuff she needed, lightened her day, and
she smiled inmediatly. Whisteling the same song, she walked out of the park,
and into the streets. She was walking by some buildings now, two tall ones
that were extremely close to each other. In between them only a very short
alley stood. The buildings were so tall they blocked all the light out. It
was like entering a tunnel. All the sunlight went off, and only shadows and
silence surrounded her. It was dark, and a chill crossed her spine. , she thought, as she tried to hurry to get back to sunlight.
But, she heard something.

At first, she thought it was her imagination, but she heard it again. It
was a suffocated sound, as if someone was trying to scream, but his mouth
was covered with cotton. Curiosity kicked in, and grabbing her school bag
tightly, she walked back. Hearing carefully, she discovered the sound came
from the alley. . She was afraid, but her curiosity was
bigger. She swallowed her fears, and dared to look. The scene displayed in
front of her was so shocking, she couldn't stop herself from gasping. And
*that* was her worse mistake.

In front of her, at the end of the alley, two men dressed in black suits
and wearing sunglasses were standing, with guns on their hands. Behind
them, pinned on the wall, and slowly falling to the floor, the dead body of
a man, who had a bloddy small hole on his chest, clearly the cause of his
decease. He had a panicked expression, and Reiko felt as if his lifeless
eyes
stared directly at her. As she gasped in horror, and just two seconds later,
she screamed, the two men turned around, and without one sing of surprise,
pointed their guns at her. On a flash of understanding, she saw
as one of the pistols still had some smoke leaving it's front part, and she
knew they had killed that man. She tried to run, to dodge, to escape, but
her legs were glued to the floor. She saw as the men brought their guns up,
and looking down her chest, saw a little red dot firmly set right over her
heart. The guns had a laser aim, and both were aimed to her. She started
trembling, and her school bag made a low thud on the ground as it fell from
her grasp.

No sound reached the alley, it seemed as if she had entered another
dimension. Time passed as slowly as a snail, and Reiko's eyes were full
with tears, and her forehead covered with cold sweat. She was going to die
. . . it seemed so alien to her to think like that . . . but she *was* going
to die, there was no doubt about that. She couldn't escape, and closed her
eyes, waiting for her fate to reach her. Through a little crack on her eyes,
she saw as both men's fingers were starting to pull the triggers, and she
held her breath, waiting to hear the explosion, and then the sudden impact
on her body . . . and then die. But, before they could fire, a police siren
was heard in the distance. The men seemed to worry, 'cause they brought
their guns down inmediatly, and looked at each other. Reiko sighed in
relief.
Her thoughts were chaotic, yet, she could calm herself. .

How wrong she was . . . the men hid their guns quickly, and ran to her. She
closed her eyes, waiting for them to leave, but they never did. Instead,
she felt a sizzling pain on her neck, and then all was darkness . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Pain. Tears. Sleep. Pain . . . pain on all her body. She felt as if she was
floating on a sea of cotton . . . everything was muffled, slow, heavy . . .
she wanted to sleep, but she couldn't. Something was nugging her . . .
trying to awake her. She felt all her lazyness drifting away, as she felt
her senses coming back to her . . . "Go away", she thought, unsuccesfully
trying to go back to sleep. Her head felt so dizzy . . . she couldn't think
straight. She knew she had to wake up, that something or someone was
waiting for her when she opened her eyes . . . all she could think of was
that if she did open her eyes, an unexpecyed danger was waiting, hovering
around her like a prey-bird, waiting for her to look at it. She felt all
the surroundings dissapearing and desperatly clunged to them, not wanting
to leave the dream world.

And then, that voice came. First it was a hum, which she mistook with her
own breathing, but then it grew louder, until she could figure out what it
was saying. "She's recovering quicker than I thought. No one has ever come
back to conciousness in less than 30 minutes like she has. I wonder if--".
The voice went away again. Reiko was awake. She groaned lightly. "Hmm. . .
my
head . . . hurts". The voice feel silent. "She's awake", she heard. Had
she been completely aware of what was happening, she could've heard the
closing of a door, and some movement around her. But all she could think of
now, was to drink some liquid. Her throat was dry, and she felt thirsty.
Her neck ached. Groaning again, she opened her eyes. She had to close them
inmediatly, ripples of red pain crossing through her brain. A blinding
light was set right over her eyes. She tried to back away, but something
held her where she was. So, the only thing she could do, was turn her head
sideaways, trying not to feel the pain the light caused to her closed
eyelids.

"Wa . . . water" she croaked. She was surprised when she heard her voice.
It was dry and dizzy. Her throat ached when she talked, the air scratching
her inner breathing system. She heard a noise, and her head turned towards
it, but the light followed her there too. A sizzling sound was heard, as if
a water pipe was being opened. Guessing from the noises she was hearing, a
glass was being filled. Then, she felt a shadow creeping over her. She
still couldn't open her eyes, but heard a manly voice saying: "Here.
Drink". A hand cupped her chin, and held a cold glass to her lips. She felt
humidity on them, and opened her mouth quickly, letting the liquid slid
down her throat. It was cold and inmediatly returned her to her senses. She
swallowed, and was instantly fully awake. Her eyes remained closed, but her
other senses were scanning the room.

Her ears heard the sound of cars passing by, or better said, over them, and
she knew they were underground. Her tact was useless though. She wriggled
around a bit, and discovered she was hand and foot tied, to a wodden chair.
The wood chips pierced her wrists, and she bit her lip. That's why she
couldn't move.

Her concentration was broken as a voice said: "I know you can hear me.
Don't try to deny it, or you'll regret it, understand?". She knew she was
unable to move, so she nodded. The voice spoke again: "Good. Now, listen to
me. What *exactly* did you see at the alley today?". Reiko was getting
angry. How dare someone tie her up, blind her totally, and start asking her
questions?. She coughed, trying to clear her throat. "Off", she whispered,
talking almost to herself. "What?". The voice was obviously surprised.
"Off. Turn the lights off", she repeated. "And what makes you think you can
ask fo what you want?". She could feel a glint of amusement on his voice.
"My friends . . . they now where I am. They'll call the police". It was a
bluff, but her mind was still a bit foggy, and running at only half it's
capacity. She couldn't think of another excuse. "That's not true. We
checked, and you never told anyone where you were going". She smiled:
"Maybe . . . and maybe not", she said, trying to sound as misterious as
one could be while being in that situation. She heard a laugh and the man
said: "You're good, you know?". She smiled, and whispered: "Better than you
think". The man laughed again, and she felt a hand on her shoulder.
"Excellent, girl".

Then, she heard footsteps and the light was shut off. She blinked a couple
of times. Her vision was blurry. Colors . . . a mass of colors was the only
thing she could see. She blinked again, ignoring the pain on her eyelids.
She groaned, and kicked the floor, angry because she couldn't reach her
eyes to ruffle them. A chuckle was heard, and she felt the man walking
behind her. She stiffened as she heard a click, which she recognized as the
opening of a portable knife. But then, she relaxed again. If she was going
to die, she would. Now she didn't have the strengh to fight anyone, less
death.

She sighed, and closed her eyes. But, the final blow never came. Instead,
she felt a tug on the ropes that tied her hands, and then they were free.
Her arms fell to her sides, but she didn't move. Then, the man moved, and
her feet were set free too. "That's a bonus", she heard, right into her
ear. Her vision was getting better now. Slowly she reached her left wrist
with her right hand, and massaged it a bit. They were sore, but not as hurt
as she thought they would be. Blinking, she turned around, and for the
first time, faced her captor. "So", he said, "happy now?". Reiko flinched,
as she squeezed her wrist too tightly. He was a man. That's the only way
she could describe him. Blond hair, blue eyes, *not* a face she could
remember easily later on. "Who . . . who are you?", she asked, tapping her
foot on the floor to see if she could stand up. "That isn't important. Now,
tell me, what did you see at the alley today?". Reiko swallowed, and
answered: "Nothing". A hint of irony flashed through the man's eyes.

"Nothing?. Are you sure?". The man's eyes were drilling in her's, trying to
make her tell the truth. "I'm telling you, I saw nothing". Her voice
quivered a little, as she showed all the fear she was feeling. They stood
like that for a couple of moments, eye-to-eye, trying to read on the
other's soul. But, time passed, and although Reiko was shaking now, the
chair she was sitting on muffled every movement, so that passed almost
unnoticed to the man in front of her. "Very well then", said the man,
breaking their eye-battle, and walking towards the table, "if you don't
wanna tell us, I'll have to make you forget it". Reiko followed his every
movement carefully. The man had reached the table, and opened a drawer.
>From inside he took two things: a glass container, filled with what looked
like water, and a syringe. Reiko's head moved to the side, as she tried her
hardest to see what the label on the container said.

The man noticed this, and said, a grin on his face: "It's hydrogen
peroxyde. Happy now?". Reiko blushed as she was caught so easily. But, not
caring about the red on her cheeks, she remained looking at him. She saw as
he opened the container, put the needle inside, and pulled the plug to him.
The medical instrument was filled with the liquid, in which many bubbles
floated. Then, he pointed it up, and pressed the plug. A bit of peroxide
fell to the floor, making a splashing sound, than echoed through the room.
When he was sure the syringe was full, he walked towards her. "What are you
doing?" asked Reiko, her voice low in fear. She was beginning to understand
what intentions did this man had. "I'm gonna make you forget with this", he
answered, as simply as if he was saying he was going to chop the grass. "But
. . . you CAN'T!. It'll KILL ME!". Reiko's voice was starting to sound like
a shriek. "Yes. Pity that's an inevitable side efffect. But you'll forget,
won't you?".

Terror grabbed hold of Reiko's body, and made her jump backwards, somehow
avoiding to stumble on the chair she was sitting on, and landing safely
some distance away. "You . . . you can't!. I swear I didn't see anything!.
PLEASE!. Believe me!". She tried to look at the man, but her eyes were
filled with tears now. Never had she felt before this fear, this terror,
the certainty that she was going to die in a few moments was strange to her,
yet it triggered her instincts. She brushed her eyes fiercely, deciding not
to let the man see she was crying. As she did, she noticed a strange look
on his eyes. She could swear she heard him whisper to himself: "Hmm,
good reflexes, quick, fast healing, young . . . maybe this is what we
need".

She backed away more, but something hard pressed against her back. Turning
around, she saw with spine-tingling terror that she had reached the wall.
She had nowhere to escape now, but she wasn't going down without a fight.
But, as she looked to the man again, she saw he had put the syringe on the
table, and was just staring at her with a thoughtful expression. Silence
settled on the room, only Reiko's ragged breathing breaking it. Then, the
man spoke: "Tell me, Suiseki-san, if I gave you another choice, would you
take it?". She almost fainted right there and then; there was a way to
survive after all. "Indeed", she said, sounding as hopeful as any teenager.
"Listen. What I am going to tell you is a very well kept secret, so if you
decide not to take my offer, the only other way you have is death,
understood?". She nodded her head, feeling that what was to come was going
to change her life completely.

"We are a secret organization that works under anyone who's wealthy enough
to pay us. We spy, kill, deceive and work undercover. Yes, in some sort of
way, we are like than english man, James Bond. But, our job is far more
demanding and difficult. Only the strong survive in here, the weak die in
less than a week. What I am asking you is: join us and save yourself from a
premature death". Reiko choked a bit. This man was asking her to be a
secret spy?. Her?. Her mind was a whirlwind of things she couldn't quite
understand. She needed time to think, and things looking as they were
*that* was the thing she didn't have. "What if I accept?. How will it
affect my life?". "Completely. You'll dissapear. If you accept, your
identity as Suiseki Reiko will be erased from existence. You'll only be one
of us now. You'll sleep where we tell you, wear what we tell you, talk to
whom we tell you. Your friends, family, everything you know as life now
shall be forgotten. Now that I think of it, the both choices I'm offering
you are death".

The impact of his words hit her directly. Tear welled up on her eyes again,
and this time, she let them go freely. "But . . . my parents . . . what
about them?". She couldn't bare thinking how could she survive without her
mother's support, or her father's advice. "They are no more. We'll make
something up. Generally, in this cases, we make a fake car accident, so
that the body is unrecognizable, except for some clues that will make them
believe it was you. So, I see you haven't decided yet. I'll give you three
minutes, no more". The man sat on the chair Reiko had been in just some
minutes ago, and closed his eyes. But, she knew better than to try anything
with him.

She let herself fall to the floor, sliding down the wall. Tears and more
tears were coming out of her eyes, but she couldn't sob. She was too
shocked. . A faint smile reached her lips, as she realised that if she
had gone with Hikaru, none of this would've happened . . . she would be safe
with her mom, at the mall, . . . not inside some God-knows-where place,
pondering on such a difficult descision . . . If she had followed her
routine, she would have continued living as she had, no surprises, no
emotion, no unexpected . . . so many 'what if's that she knew were
pointless, but she couldn't help thinking on them.

What if that was what wrong?. Her life was too boring . . . was it?. Her day
consisted in getting up, going to school, going abck home, doing homework,
watching TV or going out with friends . . . and so on and on, everyday the
sane than the one before, and before and before . . . she needed action, and
she knew it. Maybe this was her chance. But, keep on living without her
family, just like that?. Fifteen was the age when people need their parents
the most, as radical changes such as puberty appear . . . but on the other
hand, she had already gone through that period . . . she was a woman capable
of taking her own descisions; she had always been a precocious girl,
everyone
told her that . . . but again, her mom and dad . . . she imaged how they
would react to her 'death' . . . the teary and sad face of her mom, the firm
but destroyed stance of her dad . . . it was so painful . . .
.

Just as this thought crossed her mind, she felt movement in the room.
Looking up, she saw that the man had stood up, and was looking at her
intently. "So, have you made your descision?", he asked. Reiko took a deep
breath, and stood up. Supporting herself on the wall, she closed her eyes.
Not listening to the pain on her soul that accepting the reality meant, she
nodded. "Good. And it is?" the man continued, appearing not to care about
her feelings. "I . . . I . . . I've decided to . . . join you", she said,
feeling as tears returned to her eyes. A sizzling pain run from her heart
to every part of her body, as she accepted the fact that her life as she
knew it was no more. "Alright then. You understand that by accepting this,
you accept to quit every contact with your previous life, every
relationships you may have had, every memories of what you did, were doing
and were going to do?".

Reiko felt as if a cold knife had stabbed her right in her heart and the
man was now twisting it mercylessly. It hurt so much, and more because she
knew that what that man was saying was the truth. They appeared to be too
organized to just let her escape, and he didn't even have to say it for her
to know that if she did try to run away, her family would be endangered.
She closed her eyes, and let her tears go freely. They got away of the
protector cover of her eyelids, and went down slowly, leaving a wet trail
of pain behind. "Yes, I do", she answered, her voice so low it was almost a
whisper. She thought that if she said it louder, her soul would break on
the pain she was feeling. "All set then. I'll call your tutor. He'll be
your partner until we assign you another one".

He walked to the opossite wall on which she was standing, and pressed a
button. In the distance, a low ring was heard. As soon as it sounded, the
man started talking to what looked like an intercom. "Please, send in
Hiroshi. Yes, room 4, thank you". When he finished, he turned around, and
said: "Now all we have to do is wait. It can't take him long to be here
so--". He was interrupted by a knock in the door. "Come in", he said. The
door opened, to reveal a handsome young man in his 20's who walked into the
room. "You called?", he said, his voice somehow bringing a bit of serenity
to Reiko's heart. "Yes Hiroshi. I'll go straight to the point. I need you
to train this girl". As he spoke, the man had moved his hand, and was now
signaling the trembling girl on the corner of the room. For the first time,
the man adressed as Hiroshi seemed to see her. His eyes fell upon her.
Reiko was shaking, but didn't miss the gaze. She looked back, with all the
little strengh she still had, and noticed how cute his eyes were . . .
green, as the forest in summer.

Hiroshi literally scanned her up and down, and Reiko couldn't stop the
blush on her cheeks. , she thought, . The young man turned to the older one, and whispered, but loud
enough so she could hear: "How can I train her?. She's just a kid. She'll
die at the training room!. I can't do it!". "Hiroshi, if you don't accept
her, I'll have to kill her. I can't tell anyone else to do it, they're all
too harsh to take it easily. But, believe me, this girl has a lot of inner
strengh, all you need to do is find a way to make it come out". "Still, I
refuse to train her. I don't want to be responsable for the death of an
innocent, and besides, I'm too--".

"I can do it", came the voice from the corner. They both turned around,
stunned that she had been able to hear them. "I can survive", she repeated,
a glint of determination on her voice, though her eyes kept being glassy
with tears. As she talked, she was standing up, but still supporting
herself on the wall. Hiroshi turned to face her, and said, a bit too
harshly for his taste: "You don't know what you're getting yourself into.
You'll last no more than a day". Reiko sniffled, and her mouth formed a
straight line on her face. "You'll never know if you don't try", she said.
The answer hit Hiroshi hard. His eyes flared a bit, and looked directly
into the girl's ones. They stood like that for a while, looking at each
other, the smaller ones of Reiko full with tears, yet the plea they were
sending to Hiroshi was so obvious and desperate, he should've been an ice
cube to ignore it.

He sighed, and huffed. "Allright", he said, defeated. Inmediatly, Reiko's
face lighted up in joy, and she had to hold herself to not run to him, jump
and hug him fiercely. "But don't think I'm gonna be an easy teacher, Ok?",
he said, trying to hide to himself the fact that his heart had felt so
relieved when the girl had smiled. Reiko nodded, and brushed all her tears
away. Somehow, the appearance of this man had made her load lighter, and
she no longer felt so bad for having to leave her family. No, don't
misunderstand her feelings, it's just that ever since Hiroshi had loked at
her, she had felt a warm feeling spread over her, as if he had healed a bit
of the big crack her heart had experienced.

The older man had watched the scene in front of him in silence. But now, he
spoke: "So. Hiroshi-san, these is some info you'll need". He picked up a
folder from over the table, and opened it. "Her name is Suiseki Reiko.
She's 15 years old, her birthday is today. She's got excellent marks at
school, her healing is very quick, her reflexes are the best. She's smart,
and quick thinking. I think she can be one of the best in this business",
he finished, closing the folder and crossing his arms, "if you teach her
well". Hiroshi nodded, and looked to Reiko. "C'me on girl. I'll show you
were you're going to live from now on". He motioned to her with his right
hand, and turned around to walk to the door.

Reiko stood up quickly, and cleaned her clothes a bit. She still could feel
a deep pain on her chest, but things were moving, and for now at least she
didn't have time to weep. Not even looking back, she followed her sensei
into the hallway the door connected to, and entered a whole new world, the
world of international espionage . . . .

To be continued . . . .

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Aha!. So, here's the explanation!. That was what Reiko had been mourning all
along!. Got it?. No?. Ahh, well, e-mail me then, and I'll explain everything
to you. I'm trying to keep things as interesting as I can, but believe me,
having writer's block isn't helping me at all!!.

I SWEAR Ami's long hair has nothing, ABSOLUTLY NOTHING to do with Tendo
Akane's appearence at the beggining of Ranma 1/2 . . . who am I trying to
deceive anyway?. YES, if you wanna know how she looked like, put Akane on
her place. Maybe some minor details here and there, but that would be it.
Find it completely un-original?. Well, sue me!. I didn't have the
inspiration that day, and besides, I've always wondered how Ami would look
with long hair . . .

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon or any of it's related characters, but
Inoue Hiroshi is my creation. You may use him (as if anyone would want to
use MY stuuf for anything!!) as long as you give me credit!.

    ---------------------------------------------------------------------
Name: 'The truth about Ami', chapter 5.
Author: Coni.
E-mail adress: rubi@riemann.mat.puc.cl
Rated: PG-13. (Yes. Still. For violence and . . . no. It isn't here yet).
        Stuff at bottom.

"And that's it", finished Hiroshi. He looked around him, and stared to the
different expressions his listeners had come out with. Mamoru, Rei and
Makoto had a horrorized expression on their faces. It really showed his
story had shocked them quite a lot. Makoto looked at Reiko, still sleeping
on the bed, and said: "Who would've thought such a kind girl would have
such a scary past?". She seemed to have forgotten (or better said forgiven)
what Reiko had done to her at the cliffs. Hiroshi continued his inspection.
Usagi was by Mamoru's side, her eyes glassy. Hiroshi noticed her eyes
showed pain for her friend, and surprise for the dark side of the world he
had just showed her. "Poor Reiko-chan" she whispered, "she must have had a
terrible experience". Finally, he turned to look at Minako, and saw she was
giggling. It struck him. How could she laugh at such a serious situation?.
It appeared she felt his gaze, 'casue she stopped. "What's so funny?", he
asked, seriously believing this girl was completely crazy.

He almost jumped out of his seat, when Minako flew from where she was
sitting, and was by her side in less than a blink. She started patting his
shoulder, while a mischiveous look appeared on her eyes. "So, you do love
her don't you?", was all she said. If the Senshi's and Mamoru's jaws had
dropped just a few more milimeters, they would've touched the floor.
"WHAT???" was the general cry. Hiroshi blushed up to the very end of every
hair, and looked away. "That's . . . that's none of your business", he
said, fighting the embarrasment out of him.

"Minako-chan, how can you say that in the situation we are now?", asked
Makoto, trying to recover her previous seriousness. "I'm the Godess of love
and beauty, aren't I?. Then, my first objective is to detect love . . . and
let me tell you that in here, love is blazing hotter than hell!", she
finished, giving Hiroshi a big and HARD hit on his back, which made him
choke. Everyone fell to the floor, with a loud THUMP!, their legs making
weird angles with the floor, leaving only Minako standing, and laughing
like a kid with a new toy.

The atmosphere of worry had vanished, up until Mamoru asked: "Hiroshi-san,
but, you haven't explained us what happened back at the Aragosai cliffs.
How did you know where she was, and what did you do to her neck?. And what
in the name of the Moon was that black thing you broke?" he finished,
almost out of breath. Rei gazed at him intently, and said: "Yeah. I still
don't get that part". "I haven't finished. That was only the beginning.
This is how everything went on . . ."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Nine months passed quickly, as the intensive training of Reiko continued.
Everyday was a different experience. She had being taught how to fight, how
to give first-aid help, how to lie convincely, how to hide her emotions,
how to move swiftly, how to knock an enemy ten times bigger than her with
one hit . . . and the list went on and on. Her classes were so strict that
sometimes she had thought of suicide (as the only of escaping she had), but
the congratulations and support of Hiroshi made this painful experience far
more bearable. He hadn't been lying when he said he wouldn't be an easy
teacher. He never helped her when she falled, never stopped now matter how
tired she was, never ceased on telling her that if she quitted, she woud be
a coward.

He taught her every movement she needed to do, every special action that
had to be done. Also, she taught her Biology. But not as she had being
taught up to them. He showed her the nerves that moved the human body, the
weak spots were everyone was vulnerable, the way her heart worked, the way
she could make more energy out of a simple piece of bread, by controlling
her breathing and metabolism. He showed her ways of improving her
abilities, such as jumping higher, running faster, holding her breath
longer . . . anything that could someday be useful for her. Right now, she
had mastered every technique he had taugh her, and was almost as good
fighter as Hiroshi. But, as they say, a master never teaches everything to
it's student.

Physics had been an important part of her learning too. The wind speed, the
gravity force, the light spectrum . . . those were ordinary things on their
classes. She needed those to understand why she couldn't jump higher unless
she moved in a certain way, or why she could easily break her neck by been
careless. Maths were something she had mastered even before this whole
thing had started, so Hiroshi didn't put much emphasis on them, except a
few tests and questions here and there, just for her knowledge not to get
dusty. Chemistry was mentioned a lot. She learnt how to mix certain
ordinary things and make a lethal bomb, or how to make gas out of a piece
of paper . . . many strange yet very useful tricks were taught to her by
Hiroshi, and she was more than willing to take them. She changed her way of
looking at things. At first, she just looked at them as common stuff, that
had no other use than the one she had been told of, but as her training
progressed, she started to think of them as weapons, last-minute life
saviours, distracting elements and eating resources.

Reiko had changed too. She had already accepted the idea of never seeing
her family again, and had completely focused on learning. She had grown a
few inches very quickly, as a result of the special training she was
receiving. She had developed strengh she never knew she had. Because she
was still short and thin, Hiorshi had taught her special ways of defeating
an enemy with her brain, not with brute power. She was an excellent
student, and learnt in two days what would've taken others two months to do
so.

Also, she had received training in weapon-use. The first time she had
picked up a gun, she had been afraid, but soon knew how to shoot directly
at the center of the aim with just a bare look. She could shoot equally
straight in front, on her back or in any of boths sides with any gun she
laid her hands on. Everytime her aim was brought forward, the humanly
shaped figure had clean and perfect shoots over the heart, center of
forehead and ears, if the intention was to kill; and on both
shoulder-blades, hands and knees if what was needed was to paralyze.

She was taught to look and to see, to listen and to hear, to sense and to
feel, things ordinary people had already forgotten how to do. Everyone was
amazed at the incredible progress the small girl was doing, and in that
short time, she reached the graduation day. Of course, the ceremony was
quite different than one on high school. The ritual consisted in one simple
task: surviving. The candidates had to pass a series of difficult tests,
which put on the table their abilities. Mind-control, physical strengh and
emotional stability were primary needs, 'cause the test didn't last an
hour, or even a day, it lasted a week. They were released into the testing
area, which was a military camp, and left alone for seven days. They had to
go over 100 kilometers of traps, fake exits, hiding shooters, wild animals
and emotional preassure.

When that day had arrived, Hiroshi had given her a thumbs-up signal, and
had then dissapeared, leaving her alone with the five other contestants.
They were all young, though she was far the less-aged one. She was the only
woman, she noticed, as they walked in silence into the plane that would
carry them to the testing place. You didn't believe that place was in
Japan, now did you?. The place I'm talking about was a little province in
Europe, more specifically, Russia. And it was *winter*. You know what I
mean with that, don't you?. Hell-freezing temperatures everyday, sudden and
deadly snow-storms, cold at everyhour . . . I think you get the point.

She wasn't nervous, just a little curious. Thoughts of giving up started
forming in her mind. It would be so easy to *suddenly* fall into a trap, or
just lay on the snow until she was just another pile of white ice . . . but
something held her back, and his name was Hiroshi. He had worked so hard in
training her that she couldn't bring herself to dissapoint him. So, shaking
her head, she threw all those silly thoughts to the back of her mind, and
completely forgot about them.

Reiko had never been to Russia before, but she knew that the politic
relationships between Japan and that country weren't the best, and if any
native man saw them, they would inmediatly be sent to court or prision. So,
another obstacle to them: avoiding farmers and everyone who could possibly
help them. The plane flight was quick, they went on a high-speed jet. On
that journey, Reiko mentally prepared herself to the almost inhuman test
she was going to face. When the plane set it's wheels on the landing deck,
her mind was clear, and no worries troubled her. She was ready.

They walked off the plane, and were received by a middle-aged woman, with a
folder on her hands. "So", she said, her eyes barely looking at them,
"you're next. You know what you have to do. This will be the start. The end
is about 100 kms away, going North. Anyone who returns here will be
inmediatly executed, do you hear me?. You've got a week to get there, no
more, no less. If any of you doesn't arrive at" - she looked at her clock
when she said this- "0800 hours of next Tuesday, you'll be considered dead,
and left behind, understood?. Now, go!". Reiko's five companions scattered
quickly, and left her behind. She had no hurry. She knew better than to
jump blindly into whatever was expecting them out there. Not caring about
the strange look she received from the woman, she looked around.

They were on a deserted aerea, and as far as she could see, the landscape
was pretty harsh. In front of her there was a forest, of old pines, covered
up to the middle of their trunks with snow. The temperature was below the
forty degrees minus 0, but she wasn't cold. She remembered Hiroshi's lesson
on how to control her body temperature. By lightly increasing or decreasing
her breathing and a few soft hits on the nerves behins her ears, she could
mantain the 36 degrees necessary for her not to feel dehydratation, or in
this case, frostbite. Besides, the big wool and something-else-made coat
they had given her was quite warm.

She scanned the forest, and her already trained eye noticed that not far
enough, a metal glitter could be seen. Following it with her gaze, she
classified it as a gun. Suddenly the shine dissapeared, and a shot was
heard. A scream followed, and she saw as the woman wrote something on her
folder. The woman whispered: "One down, five to go". She understood that
this was really serious, and breathed deeply before running into the
forest, as fast as her legs allowed her to.

As soon as she entered it, she hid behind some bushes, and located the man
hiding on top of a tree, who was very silently trying to find her. Seeing
that from where he was sitting he could easily see her if she breathed too
loud, she searched for another way of escaping. She knew that they must had
left some help for her, because an un-armed human can't fight against the
ones who've got the guns. Then, she saw it. It was a pistol, hanging from a
tree branch. The problem was, if she wanted to get to it, she would have to
leave her hiding spot, and ran directly in front of the sniper. She
recognized this as the first test. Speed. Was she fast enough to reach othe
gun, shoot the guy on the tree and kill him before she was killed?. Only
one way to know, was what she thought.

Checking on the man once again, she picked up a small stone by her side,
and threw it to the opossite way where she was. It landed on some branches,
making a rustling sound. The man inmediatly turned towards the sound, and
that was the opportunity Reiko was waiting for. She stood up as quickly as
lightning, and ran to the gun. She grabbed it, and barely checking on the
aim, pulled the trigger. The man on the tree was caught in mid turn, as the
PAINT? hit him on his shoulder and splashed his face.

Reiko looked amazed at the gun she was holding, then to the man, and again
to the gun. Yes, it was loaded with paint. Yellow one, as it is. She looked
at the man again, and saw him smiling, and giving her a thunmbs up sign.
She understood. She had passed the first test. But, there was no time to
feel happy. She still had many more to go. Leaving the useless gun on the
floor, she ran to the North, were many other dangers were expecting her . .
.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"Wow" was what Hiroshi heard as he stopped. He looked to the people in
front of him, and saw then intrigued. "And?. What happened next?" asked
Usagi, enchanted by the story as if it was a fairy tale. Hiroshi smiled,
and said: "Well, I don't want to bother you with the details, but here's a
summary. She managed to get through all the shooters, without receiving any
hit. But, a wild mountain tiger caused some problems, and she got some very
bad cuts on her side. She kept going though, and evaded all the traps that
had being set, but one, which made her receive a bullet on her shoulder.
Those were the worse wounds she received. She arrived at 0400 hours of
Tuesday at the finish, very bad bruised but nothing serious. She and only
one other guy were the ones who survived. And so, she passed her graduation
test".

"Way to go Reiko-chan!" said Rei, as she clapped her hands. "Yeah!. I knew
you could do it!" added Makoto, hugging her friend. Mamoru was surprised.
"You mean, *our* friend here managed to survive seven days on the Russian
snow desert, alone, with shooters, animals and bad weather behind her?", he
asked, still not quite believing it. "Yes she did", said Hiroshi, that
smile of pride again on his lips. "If you don't believe me, here, take a
look". He stood up, walked to the bed and said: "Excuse me, Reiko". He then
pulled her hospital gown back, and left her right shoulder to full view.
"Here, see?" he said, signaling a faint scar on it. It was round, and the
only mark that showed it was there was a little pink color on it's borders.
Everyone walked closer to take a better look, and accepted what was true.
Their so quiet, calm and never angry friend *had* survived after all.

"That was cool!" said Minako, a glint of something (maybe jeaolusy) in her
eyes. "That should teach Artemis how to make a proper training. Never, in
any year during all the time I was Sailor V did I ever face something as
hard as that". Reiko moaned softly on the bed, and Hiroshi pushed them all
aside. "We'd better let her sleep. She's being through a lot today, and the
anesthesia of the operation is still on her system. Let's go back to where
we were". They did, and the girls sat back on their chairs.

As soon as they were, Makoto said: "So, what happened next?". Hiroshi sat
back too, and his eyes took a strange appearance. They seemed to be longing
for those times he was telling them about . . . they were filled with
melancholy. "That was when it all started, when the Blue Thunder entered
the agency's life . . . .".

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Since that day, Reiko was accepted as one of them. She became a member, and
as everyone else, was asigned to a partner. That partner was Hiroshi. They
were always together, as the rules said. As she arrived to the finish of
the test, she was almost fainted, but managed to make a thumbs-up sign to
Hiroshi before collapsing into his arms. The blood-loss and the stress were
too much. She was taken to the agency's hospital, were she remained two
weeks. That was all the time she needed to be ready again. As soon as she
left, she was sent to see the boss. She had never seen him before, but
managed to get to his good side. She was then told his former teacher was
now her partner. On the inside she was screaming in joy and happiness. She
could now be with him in another aspect than simple teacher-student; now
they were friends.

Their first mission together was a rather simple one. They had to retrieve
some highly confidential documents from an office at the French Embassy in
Tokyo. They went at night, and entered easily, but getting out was the
problem. There was a silent alarm that connected directly with the police
station. When they were in the middle of their searching the door bursted
open, and about 20 police officers were pointing their guns at them. The
"FREEZE!" cry was said, and they remained still, not sure on what to do.
And then, the instinct Reiko had developed while being at Russia told her
what to do.

With her hands still up, she started sobbing, and even let a few tears
leave her eyes: "Officers, thank God you're here. I was so scared. This
man"-she pointed to the very surprised Hiroshi- "kidnapped me, and forced
me to come with him. I didn't know what to do!". Her innocent face, her
youth and most of all her clean and glassy eyes made the police men believe
everything. "Calm down kid. It's Ok now. Just put your hands down and walk
here", said one of the men, motioning for her to move closer. Reiko did,
now brushing her eyes, and sobbing. She could feel Hiroshi's gaze on her
back, as she slowly put her left hand inside her clothing, and took it out
with a small gas bomb she carried there.

She muffled the sound of her pulling the detonator with her sobbing. She
was still walking towards the police men, and the suddenly she stopped. In
the back of her mind, seconds were counting. <10, 9, 8, 7 . . . >. She
smiled, and threw the bomb right at the men feet. "What the hell is that?!"
asked the litenaunt, as the small round object rebounded right under him.
<3,2,1, 0>. As her mind reached the last number, the bomb exploded, filling
the room with a thick cloud of gas. Coughs and screams were heard. She
didn't stand there to see it though, she ran back, grabbed the papers and
photos which were over the table, and ran to the window. Then, she noticed
Hiroshi was still paralyzed with a surprised look on his eyes. "COME ON!.
You wanna stay and explain?" she yelled. It was enough for him to wake up,
and in less than a second, he was by her side. She opened the window, and
looked down. Her hair was ruffled by the wind, as she looked to the ground,
25 stories down.

"What are we going to do?" she asked to her partner, a frown over her
almost always clear forehead. Hiroshi looked down, and then looked up
again. "We've better go to the roof-top. It's closer". As he talked, he was
crossing the window sill, and motioned her to follow. She had never been
afraid of heights, and just followed him obediently. They started climbing,
their hands and feet clunging to every possible support, even if it only
was a thin piece of metal or an open window. The wind echoed around them,
but they were experts. Below them, Reiko heard as the police men looked up
through the window. "STOP!", "How do they do that?", "They can't be human"
reached their ears. A faint smile spread through her lips, as she realised
they trully were beyond human now. They climbed the five stories that
separated them of the top, and reached the flat roof. Up there, they could
see the city of Tokyo below them, with lights everywhere.

But, there was no time to be contemplating. The police surely would go up
the stairs, and reach them inmediatly. As soon as she thought of this, she
looked at the door that stood there, the only thing that interrupted the
flatness of the roof. It didn't have any type of lock, but somehow they
nedded to close it, at least to get a bit more time to think of a way out.
She loked around frantically, and her quest was fullfilled. Behind them,
probably a garbage of some construction nearby, was a big, and very heavy
woodden beam.

Reiko ran to it, and kneeling a bit, tried to pick it up. She grabbed it
and dicovered it was heavier than she had thought. "Help me!" she said to
Hiroshi, a commanding tone taking over her voice. He moved swiftly, and
helped her in carrying the wood beam towards the door. Pressing it firmly
against it, and janking it deeply into the floor, they blocked the opening,
just as they had hoped for. And just in time, because as soon as they
walked backwards, brushing a bit of sweat out of their foreheads, steps and
yells were heard, and they knew the police had arrived to the stairs. The
door trembled as they tried to open it. But the wood was tough and it held.
But not for long, as they noticed a crack begining to form in the middle of
the beam. They had gotten some time, but it wasn’t enough.

They ran to the edge of the roof, desperatly trying to find a way out.
There seemed to be none. The building was the higher one on it’s block, and
the next one was over 30 meter away. Jumping wasn’t a choice. No
parachutes, no exit, nothing. The frown was now evident on both of their
eye-brows, as they looked at each other. "So what are we going to do?",
asked Reiko, trying to make him hear her over the huffs, puffs and yells
coming out behind of the closed door. "I don't know . . . I can only think
of one way" he answered, looking straight into her eyes. "And that is?" she
asked, feeling the urgency of the time, and in no mood for word games.
"We’ll have to fight" he said, his tone final.

"Fight?. Are you out of your mind?. There are about 20 of them, and we're
just two!" she said, not believing he had said so. "So?. This is nothing
compared to what you did in Russia!. Besides, it's that or risk yourself of
getting Japan into deep trouble with France, not to mention the martial
court we'll both get" he said, cracking his knuckles. She thought about it,
and realised what he was saying was absolutly true. They had no other way.
Desperate times call for desperate measures, she thought. "Alright. Let's
go ´n get them" she said, grabbing her long hair and tying it into a
ponytaial on her back with an elastic band she always carried on her wrist.
The bangs that had gotten loose with their climbing went back to behind her
ears, and the two partners were ready to fight.

Knowing that the best way of winning an already lost battle was to take
some advantage over their enemy, they ran to the door and climbed it
swiftly, ending looking down to where all the officers would come through.
They stood side by side as the door bursted open when the wood bar broke
under the pushes and hits of the police. About 17 men ran through the
opening, and stopped dead on their tracks as they saw no one. "Where did
they--?" was the only thing one of them could say before something jumped
on him and quickly knocked him unconscious. Reiko had landed on him, and
hit him with a karate hand-blow, while Hiroshi was busy putting two guards
to sleep by using a very similar punch.

Everyone stood still for a while, until one of the remaining men yelled:
"GET THEM!". Seven men turned to Reiko, trying to block any way of her
escaping while at the same time unsheathing their guns. But, the girl
didn't give them time. As soon as the voice reached her ears, she jumped
forward, hit a guy in the stomach with her leg and punched another one with
her elbow right below his chin. They were both out the game quickly. The
five others were surprised and stopped moving, giving Reiko the time she
needed to move closer to them, bend down, move her leg on a circling motion
and make one of them fall onto other. Four down.

She turned around, and froze in middle movement. The three other police men
were pointing their guns at her. "Now girl" said one of them, "calm down
and put your hands up". She knew she didn't stand a chance against a gun,
so she did. She raised her hands. But, they never said anything about
shutting her mouth. "Officers, you don't think on shooting me, now do
you?", she said on her sexiest voice, and surprising even herself for her
boldness. The men were startled, and said: "I'm sorry girl, but you've
broken several laws in here, and we're gonna have to take you back to the
station. Now, take it easy. Junichi, go and check if she has any guns with
her" said the man who was talking. The guy next to him nodded, and still
pointing his gun at her, walked towards her. She kept smiling her most
innocent grin, and waited until the police man's hand was in reach to do
her next move. As quick as lighting she grabbed the armed-hand by his
wrist, doubled it over and made the man do a back-leap in the air, before
throwing him to another cop, smashing them both into the hard floor.

The guy who received his partner did it right in his chest, and his gun
fell off his hand, dissapearing from sight. Reiko was about to congratulate
herself for being so smart when a thunder was heard and a sizzling sound
made it's way right next to her ear. She froze again, as she understood the
cop still standing wouldn't miss the next shot. "Miss" her hearing was
muffled, still a bit deaf by the sound of the bullet but she could make out
the words easily, "if you don't stop now, you're gonna force me to harm
you". She was out of ideas. She looked back by the corner of her eye, and
saw that Hiroshi had turned down five of the seven men who had attacked
him, but was busy attending them, and certainly wasn't the one who could
help her. So, she was going to have to get herself out of there alone.

Again, she stood with her hands over her head, looking at an angry yet very
surprised cop. What was she supposed to do now?. No time for bombs, and no
artifact she carried would help her, save for that little knife on her
upper arm, which was covered by her clothing. Breathing raggedly by
weariness and a bit of fear, she frowned. She had practised a bit with
knife-throwing, but not enough for her taste. She didn't want to kill the
man, he was just doing his job. But it was her life or the other one's and
she made her descision. By lightly contracting her upper-arm muscle, the
small yet sharp knife she carried sprang quickly into her right hand, which
she inmediatly brought back and then forward with tremendous speed, to then
let the knife fly.

Time seemed to stop, as the metal pointy weapon made it's way towards the
police man. He, unconsciously, followed it's path with his gun, moving his
chest to another angle. He didn't react, as it flew directly to it's aim .
. . . his heart. When the man had moved, he left his heart completely
unprotected, and the knife had it's target written in fire. Reiko stiffened
and supressed a scream of horror, as she saw the knife entering the man's
body, and he by instinct pulled the trigger. The bullet was turned aside,
and it flew undangering no one up to the star filled sky. Reiko wasn't seen
anything at that point though. The only thing that she could distinguish
was the look on the man's eyes as he fell to the floor, already dead. She
hadn't intended to, but had made a clean and perfect shot, killing the man
instantly. She gasped and her mind clouded completely.

To be continued . . .

Well?. What do you think?. Good?. Bad?. Sucks?. I'd better stop?. Want me to
continue?. Just tell me!.

Feel angry because I stopped at such a thrilling part?. Ohhhh, I'm evil. I
know it, and couldn't stop myself from cutting it here!.  Anyway, more and
more spine-tingling truth is revealed on the next chapters, as we continue
to learn about Reiko's life . . . or lack of it, as you like.

I don't have a clue on how the relationships between Japan and Russia and
france are, so please, please, don't feel insulted or anything . . . I chose
those countries because I needed a place where winter is extremely hard, and
being a geography dumb as I am, I only could think of Russia. And France
because it just popped into my mind. So don't get angry atme, please!!.

The "Blue Thunder" term comes from the excellent Rumiko Takahashi's Ranma
1/2
I'm just using it for a while. It doesn't belong to me, I'm just using it
for
fanfic purposes.

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon isn't mine, never was , never will, (no matter how
many times I ask for it to Santa Claus . . . he appears not to listen to
me!!). Inoue Hiroshi is mine though, andI'll haunt you down and slap you
with my plastic-about-to-break-strangely-looking Sailor Moon dolls if you
use him without my permission.

    ---------------------------------------------------------------------
Name: 'The truth about Ami', chapter 6.
Author: Cony.
E-mail adress: rubi@riemann.mat.puc.cl
Rating: PG-13 (mild vioence and small lemon)
        Stuff at bottom.

She had killed a man. A human being. An innocent worker. He probably had
family, had children . . . a life. A life she had destroyed, that she had
mercylessly ended in less than a second. She fell to her knees, looking at
her hands. Was it just her or were they covered with blood?. Blood. Guilt.
She had done it. On purpose. It was her fault. She had killed. She had
finished a life. "No . . . No . . . No. NONONONONONO . . . .". Her scream
pierced the air, as she started crying. She embraced herself, trying to
steady the shaking she was suffering, but it was pointless. She no longer
controlled her body, as it was overloaded with emotions.

Hiroshi heard her scream, and inmediatly turned around. He saw her kneeling
on the floor, crying, and a cop lying a few meters away from her, and
judging by the knife that was shinning directly over his heart, dead. He
understood what had happened and finished quickly. "No time for playing
now", he told the men in front of him, as he punched them strongly right on
their noses, putting them unconscious. When he made sure none of the men
were awake, he ran to his partner. He kneeled by her side, and looked at
her. She clearly hadn't even felt him, so deeply entranced she was
supporting her anguish. Her hands covered her ears, and her eyes were
deeply shut, as she moved her head in a denying motion, and her lips formed
one single word, whispering it over and over again: "No. No. No. No . . .".

She was clearly in shock. Hiroshi tried to calm her. "Reiko-san, it wasn't
your fault. You did it in self-defense. It was him or you. Reiko, please
look at me". He was being gentle, so gentle that it even surprised himself.
When he had made his first kill, his teacher had scolded him deeply for
being so sentimental. He had being punished, yelled at, hit and even
threatened to be killed before he had calmed down. But he couldn't bring
himself to yell at her. He knew she was young and still carried a bit of
childhood innocence, and he didn't want to break what little was left of
it. "Reiko-san, calm down. Listen to me. You did what was needed, nothing
wrong. No one is going to punish you. Look at me, please".

She still had her eyes shut, and refused to open them. But now at least,
she had stopped covering her ears, and was listening to what Hiroshi was
saying. He then understood that if he said wrong things, it would obviously
mean the end for his student. She was in shock, in a state where the mind
doesn't answer, and you act only for instict. She could easily jump off the
building now, if he said only one guilty word to her. So, he talked slowly.
"Reiko, I know how you're feeling now. I felt the same when I killed
someone for the first time. It's Ok, please, open your eyes. Look at me".

He had placed a hand over her shoulder trying to soothe her, but with no
result. "Reiko, I understand you're feeling very troubled now, but you need
to wake up. This is something that happens in life. People die everyday,
and that man's turn had arrived, that's all. Please, open your eyes". He
was starting to worry deeply. Maybe she wasn't made for this, he thought.
After all, she's just a kid. She killed someone when she was 15, what will
she do when she's 16?. He put his other hand on her other shoulder, gently
shaking her a bit. "Reiko, please. You need to overcome this. Reiko, wake
up for me. I don't wanna leave you here. Please Reiko, do it for me".

This time, his words seemed to record on her brain, because she stopped
muttering things to herself, and her eyes slowly fluttered open. They were
glassy, and full of tears. "Hi . . . Hiroshi . . . I'm . . . I'm scared"
was what she said, sobbing. She was such an espectacle of beauty,
eventhough she was crying, that he couldn't help himself. He slowly pulled
her towards him, and made her rest against his chest. "Shhh. It's Ok now.
Everything's gonna be alright. Just forget now Reiko, forget this thing
ever happened". Reiko was still depressed, but the feeling of Hiroshi's
strong chest against her cheeks was making her very comfortable, and his
fingers caressing her hair were somehow washing her worries away. Her hands
were pressed on his chest too, supporting her there. She closed her eyes,
and let his perfume envolve her. It was so calming . . . so peaceful . . .
it was like a balm. Hiroshi was hugging her, as if trying to protect her
from the terrible feelings she was getting.

She then knew she must shake all this off. For him. He was so worried about
her . . . she couldn’t stand seen him troubled about something. A sense of
guilt washed over her, almost making the other one dissapear. Hiroshi felt
as her crying and sobbing subsided, and everything was silent again. But,
he didn't let her go. He felt so good with her inside his arms . . . it was
as if she belonged there. Only then did he realize what he was doing. He
had just broken two of the basic rules of their job: one, never let your
feelings take over you, and two, never care too much about your partner.
But . . . he couldn't just push her away, now that he himself had been the
one who had embraced her. He didn't know what to do, until Reiko finished
her worries herself. She raised again, and they ended looking at each
other. Her eyes were clear now, and her voice quivered only a little, as
she spoke: "Thank . . . thank you, Hiroshi-san". And then, she bent over,
and gave him a light kiss on his cheek.

He was so surprised he kept staring at her when she retreated, a strange
look in her eyes. He felt a burning sensation creep from where she had
kissed him, up to his head, down through his neck and nestled on his
thunder-beating heart. "Hiroshi-san, are you alright?" sounded her voice
inside his ears, making him wake up. "Yes . . . just a little . . . tired"
he muttered, not sure if it was a lame excuse or not. Reiko watched him in
wonder, but said nothing. Then, he put on the mask of seriousness again.
"We must go. Now. Who knows if these guys called for backup?. I don't wanna
fight again, not today at least". She nodded. They both stood up, and
walked out of the roof-top, Hiroshi taking special care that Reiko didn't
look the way that dead police man was. They went down the stairs, quick as
lightning, running out of the building and into the night, as some police
sirens broke the night's peacefullness with it's insistent ringing . . .

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * *

Hiroshi stopped again. It had been hard to uncover Reiko's deepest secret
to them, but he knew that what he was doing was right. They deserved to
know the truth. This time, though, his words had made quite an impact on
the girls. They were staring with a look of pure horror on their faces at
Reiko, while she slept in the hospital bed. "You mean she killed that
officer?", asked Usagi, tears trickling down her cheeks. , thought Hiroshi, as he realised the
consecuences of what he had done. .

His worries were swept away, as Usagi talked again: "Poor Reiko-chan. It
must have been terribly hard for her to bear. No wonder that look of terror
always crossed her eyes when we attacked those human-changed-into-mosters
youmas a long ago. Now I know why". Hiroshi then understood that the
friendship between Reiko and the girls and guy sitting in front of him was
true, no matter how much she had tried to deny it. Makoto had her eyes full
of tears too, and was bitting her lip to avoid crying. Rei had a sad look,
but wasn't crying. Minako was already by Reiko's side, looing strangely at
her sleeping face, and putting a comforting hand over her own. "Poor
Reiko-chan. Who would've had imagined she carried such a heavy weight
within her?".

Mamoru was sad too, but was the most stable of them all. "Hiroshi-san, was
that when it all ended?", he asked, not daring to speak too loud for some
unspoken rule. "No. I already told you. She couldn't leave. Everything went
on as it used to. When time passed, she got used to killing people, though
she tried to avoid it at any cost. But, there are some times when people
don't understand reasons, and if I remember well, she has killed over 25
people by now. I know it hurted her everytime she did so, but she had
learnt to hide her emotions pretty well, and put on a mask everytime a life
was taken. We were partners for over a year and a half. We passed through
glamoruos parties, where she disguised herself as an important countess of
Europe; meetings of important companies, where she changed into a very
efficient secretary: night-clubs, where with only a bit of make-up and
high-heels she passed as a grown-up, and the list goes on and on.

You'll never know how many things we did. She called me the Red Lightning,
for what she said was my hair and my shining. She was nicknamed by everyone
as the Blue Thunder of the agency, for her quick thinking and acting, and
her beauty. She had half the agents enchanted by just looking at them, and
the other half drooled everytime they saw her. It was quite an espectacle,
you know. But, she kept oblivious to those demonstrations of inordinate
love, and continued being my partner and friend throughout all that time.
She barely talked to any of the other agents. She was congratulated more
than a hundred times by our chief, and was even offered to entre the elite
group, a group to whom only the special and very delicate missions were
asigned, and obviously had priviledges, but she put the offer down. She
said she was very comfortable where she was and didn't want to change. I
bet our bosses had never been so happy at deciding to accept her as one of
them. I knew about her intentions of quitting since the first day, it was
plainly obvious, especially when she thought no one was looking. But, as
time passed, that idea seemed to be shaken out of her head. She appeared to
be happy with what she was doing and shadows no longer clouded her eyes",
he finished, out of breath.

"Well, then, if you two were so happy, why did she quit?. 'Cause I'm sure
she isn't a secret spy right now!", said Makoto, questioningly looking at
Hiroshi. Inmediatly, a cloud crossed through his eyes, and answered: "It
happened quite later. When the second anniversary of our meeting was
approaching, we were asigned a very delicate mission, the one which would
be the last for the Red Lightning and the Blue Thunder . . . . .

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

As they both walked along the corridor towards their chief's office, a
strange feeling started creeping up their bodies. They felt as if all their
instincts were screaming for them not to take the mission they were going
to be asigned . . . that it was going to be a disaster. They both shook
their heads at the same time, trying to send those sensations away. They
had no time to keep trying though, as they approached a big not-see-through
glass door, which had printed with big black letter the words "Chief".

Reiko knocked twice, and a man's voice answered from the other side: "Come
in". Hiroshi opened the door, and they both entered the office, which by
now knew by heart. Sitting behind a desk, was a man. He was in his middle
forties, and smiled as they appeared on the door frame. "Come, come. Sit"
he said, motioning for the two chairs in front of him. They walked in, and
sat down. Although it looked like a completely natural movement, what they
did next was one of the basic rules of survival for them. They both, at the
same time, moved their chairs a bit, so that they could look at the boss
*and* the door at the same time. You never know what dangers can come
through a closed door, specially if your back is to it.

"What is it now, boss?". "Ahhhh, youth. Impatient up to the last, aren't
we?" answered the Chief, a big grin on his face. Reiko and Hiroshi nodded,
their lips barely twitching in a half-heartedly smile. "Well, what I've got
for you now, is something very important. Since Reiko here refuses to enter
our elite group, and our Counsil believes it's because of you, Hiroshi, (at
this point, Reiko had a pale pink colouring her cheeks. If she hadn't
learnt how to control her own emotions, by now she would've been as red as
a tomato), they've decided to test you both one final time. If you pass,
you'll both enter the elite. What do you think?", he said, finished in a
tone anyone would use when teaching a child he has to behave in order to
get a new toy.

"We're honored" said Reiko, not daring to look at Hiroshi. How could her
boss be so rude?. Reveal her feelings in fron of him!!. The Chief handed
them a folder, and said: "Here. These is all the data you'll need". Hiroshi
picked it up, and skimmed through some of the pages, getting all the
important points. Then, he handed it to Reiko, who flipped through several
pages too, understanding most of the written. She kept the folder on her
lap. "Now that you're familarized with what this is all about, I'll explain
some things to you. You see, we think we've discovered the hiding place of
one of the biggest top-secret-info dealers organization of all times. We
need you both to check on it, and if necessary, try to confuse them. What
we're asking you is to enter the place, break through security and retrieve
the papers that will give us all the proof we need to send those bastards
straight to where they belong. It's a very difficult mission. It would've
generally be asigned to the elite group, but since you're the best down
here . . . . I'm telling you to be very careful, 'cause this ain't like
anything you've ever faced before. Understood?"

"Yes, sir", they said in unison. "Good. You may leave now". They both stood
up, and left the room with no further talking. The were ready again. A
mission was set, and they were going for it. In an unspoken agreement, they
gave each other an hour to prepare everything they needed. That meant
dressing up in a suitable way and not just with clothing, but with special
weapons under it, picking up all the implements needed such as field
glasses, and running to the agency's garage, to grab a car, and wait for
the bomb revision everyone had to go through before leaving the complex.
They were accepted, and they speeded into the street, making their tires
shriek as Hiroshi drove as fast as the laws allowed him to.

They arrived after half an hour or so. To avoid being caught, they left the
car some blocks away, and walked carefully the rest of the way. They knew
that the organization they were spying, known as The Claw, would surely
have snipers and watchmen chekcing at everyhour all the streets close to
the factory. Yes, their hiding place was an old abandoned food-canning
factory.

They walked side by side, as if they were a happy couple in-love. They
talked loudly about nothing, just as a couple of teenagers do on a date.
She giggled several times, as if he had just told her one of the best jokes
in the world, and to make everything picture perfect, he even put an arm
over her shoulders, and pressed her to him. As he did so, Reiko looked
away, feeling warm all over. She was having some serious problem focusing
on the mission, with him so close to her . . . and eventhough everything
that they were doing was fake, she felt so good with it . . . as if that
was right, and set since the beginning of time. But her responsability was
bigger, and managed to push those feelings to the back of her mind.

She returned to the real world, and discovered Hiroshi was pressing his
hand harder on her shoulder, the signal she was waiting for. "Darling,
please, let me check my make-up. I think it's all messed up". Hiroshi
answered as she expected. "Sure honey. Go ahead". Reiko took her hand to
her back-pocket, and picked frrom it a small hand-mirror. Which she opened
and looked at herself into it. She moved it from side to side, as if trying
to get the best view of her face. She then fixed her hair, though there was
nothing wrong with it, and even pinched her cheeks a bit. With that,
Hiroshi understood she had seen something. "So, darling, how are your
cats?. Still home-sick?". She answered, never taking her eyes off the
mirror, and playing the perfect role of a young girl fixing herself. "Oh,
you mean Miko, Rawa and Ayako?. Oh, they're fine by now. Just a little
disturbed". Hiroshi felt a little worried at this. So the snipers were
looking down on them, and were three?. That was a lot, and if they weren't
calm, it was because they supected something.

Reiko spoke again. "I'm gonna turn around. The sun doesn't let me see much
in here". Casually, she turned to the other side, and continued looking at
her. The mirror moved again, and to avoid being so obvious, she said, a
triumphant tone in her voice: "At last!!. I know what's wrong now!". She
stopped looking at the glass, and from a pocket on her pants, grabbed a lip
outliner, and started fixing her lips. "Honey, did I tell you my family
wants to meet you?. My uncle Akagi, my aunt Haruko, and specially my dad's
grandparents can't wait to meet you in person". .

With her watching complete, Reiko closed the mirror, and put it in her
pocket. Although her exterior was smiling and calm, on her insides, she was
absolutly worried. . She giggled a bit, and danced a bit, as if she
was a totally happy girl, making a private show for her fiance. But, as she
turned around several times, and moved gracefully, she was also scanning
their surroundings, searching for a possible help.

And then, she saw it. It was an old building, which had a huge ad that
read: "Soon to be updated". . Her eyes glittered in
relief, as an idea was forming on her head. She stopped spinning, and faced
Hiroshi again, who was looking at her as if he was the happiest man on the
world, and thinking about how lovely she was, instead of a man feeling the
cold hands of fear clutching his heart. Well, he actually *was* thinking
about how lovely she as, but that she would never knew. "Honey, what about
if we go and check the apartment you told me about?". Reiko's words
startled him.

"Apartment?" asked Hiroshi, not quite understanding what she meant.
Was that a new password he didn't know?. If he didn't act quick, they
weregoing to be discovered. "Yes, *darling*" the strain on Reiko's voice
was so evident, he wondered if those snipers were fools to not see what was
happening. "Remember we wanted to buy an apartment before we got married,
so that we don't have to worry about it later?" said Reiko, as her eyes
flared daggers to her partner. . He felt cold sweat on his back. Behind
him, he could feel the gaze ofabout five men, who had powerful guns on
their hands, and were preparing them and aiming them to his back. .

Time kept going, and Reiko was about to burst. Hiroshi was an airhead right
now, and she couldn't handle it. But, almost two years of working on the
same job had taught her to be patient. . Her hands were
sweaty, but a grin still stood on her lips, her body unconsciously still
playing the role of a loving girl. "Sure darling. Let's go!". Reiko had to
master a lot of her willpower not to let a sigh leave her throat. . They clasped hands,
and walked to the building, still giggling and making jokes to each other,
though there was a little bit of stiffness on them right now.

As soon as they entered, they run to the inside, and hid behind door. Reiko
smacked Hirosshi on the back of his head, and whispered sharply:
"You're one sort of idiot, you know?". Hiroshi grinned sheeply, and
answered: "I'm sorry. You caught me distracted. But we managed to get
through, didn't we?". "Not with your help", was the answer he got.
Eventhough her tone was sharp and angry, Reiko was grateful that she had
such a good partner, one that she could trust completely, that wouldn't let
her down, no matter what. She had learnt to trust him fully, in a world
where she could trust no one, and knew he was the perfect partner and
friend for her. "So, what's your plan?" he asked, looking outside and
seeing that twoor three men were walking up and down the roofs, and clearly
looking forthem. "Have you got any granade?". "One. But it's small".
"Should be enough. Give it to me", said Reiko, while getting her own
hand-granade out.

Hiroshi took his out, and handed it to his partner. "What
are you planning to do?" he asked, intrigued by her behaviour. "Look. Those
guys up there need a HUGE distraction to get their minds off their job. A
car crash, a help cry or those ordinary tricks won't work, so we need to
make something fantastic. Like for example, a building coming down with a
big explosion". "Excellent idea. I wonder where you get those
out-of-this-world plans that don't stop to amaze me". Reiko thanked she was
kneeling, so he couldn't see her light blushing.To avoid him noticing this,
she stood up, and said: "Stop complimenting me and help me find the weak
spot of this monster". He did so, and searched around for a couple of
minutes. Lucky for them, the building didn't had an underground floor, so
the weak spot was on the first floor, just where they were. It was easy to
find, with all the training they had both received. A weak spot of something
is a place where with very little incentive, the object could easily be
destroyed. Hiroshi located it quickly and whispered to Reiko: "Hey!. It's
here".

Reiko turned around, and ran to him. "Let's get it loaded then", she
said, taking out a scotch tape, and gluing both bombs to the spot Hiroshi
had signaled. When she finished, she loked at him, and said: "You wanna pull
thetrigger or shall I do it myself?". "I'll do it. Jst tell me where are we
going next". Reiko seemed thoughtfull for some seconds, and answered him,
though the answer looked more as if she was talking to herself: "Hmm. The
hiding place is behind us, about four blocks in that direction. If we go out
that door, we'll have enough time to run meters away before they go off. The
snipers will come here, and we'll have all the way free. Ok?". "Excellent.
Hey, Reiko-san, let me tell you I'm so happy to have you as a partner, that
I sometimes think it's a dream. I . . . I just wanted you to know it before
we start this seriously". Reiko stiffened, and one of the granades almost
fell off her hands. "Hi . . . Hiroshi-san . . . thank . . . thank you". Her
voice was trembling, a fact which didn't pass unnoticed to Hiroshi, but he
let it slip away.

Reiko finished setting the granades, and she stood up. "All done. Now, it's
your turn". He nodded, and kneeled by the artifacts. "On the count of
three", he said, putting his hand on both triggers. "One", his voice echoed
on the empty building. "Two", it entered Reiko's ears, and made her prepare
her body to run fast and good. "Three!". As soon as this single word left
Hiroshi's throat, he pulled back both of her hands quickly, and a low
click! was heard, as two little metal straws flew in the air: the triggers.
They flew for a couple of centimeters, and then fell when a low ting, and
the countdown started. But, nothing of this registred on their brains, as
they ran for their lives, as fast and as hard as their legs allowed them.
Their training became really useful at that time. They moved their legs
swiftly, literally cutting the air around them. They left the building as
quick as the wind, ran through the open street, under the bewildered view of
the shooters. They kept moving, ran through two of the four blocks that
separated them from the factory, before a loud sound was heard and the
ground under them shook with the force of the explosion. A wave of heat hit
them, and the air pushed them some meters, separating them more and more
from the origin. Behind them, the building was literally falling on itself,
crumpling to the ground as a dead bird. Smoke and pieces of metal fell all
over the place, and the air still carried the thundering sound of the
explosion. They were running so fast now, their breathing was becoming
ragged, but they never stopped. Suddenly, they saw in front of them, and
coming closer with every second, the gray walls of the factory, with it's
broken windows and doors *supposedly* closed for years. They were headed to
an empty space though.Hiroshi waved his hand frantically, and motioned for a
corner of the factory, a place which would allow them to hide and prepare
their plans. They turned in middle ran, literally making the pavement smoke.
They thanked the agency had given them special shoes, which had very thick
soles. As soon as they were covered with darkness, they stopped, and hid
behind some trash-cans.

Their breathing was heavy, though to their running and to the fear of
having been seen while they moved. They stood still for a while, only the
sound of their breaths interrupting the silence. That part of the city
wasn't a very crowded one; as a matter of fact, they hadn't seen a single
soul during all the time they had been there. Time passed, and it seemed no
one was coming for them. "Looks like we lost them", muttered Reiko, still
spying to see if anyone approached them. "We did. Now, let's go", said
Hiroshi, preparing to really start the mission. Now they were on their
territory. All they had to do was climb some stairs and find a good hiding
spot to look at the headquarters carefully, and gather the data they
needed. Then, they would be free again, to fulfill their next mission.

To be continued . . .

So, what can I say?. Reiko's past is unwrapping before your eyes . . . I
just
hope you like it. I do!.

What will happen next to our heroes?. Belive me when I say it's gonna get
better and better, as the moment of separation comes closer than you think .
. . find out why did Reiko and Hiroshi were driven appart and . . . bring
your kleenex!!. ^_^

E-mail me!. Please!. I just love getting feedback . . . besides, that's why
I
keep writing . . . what purpose is there to write your best of no one reads
it?. My adress is on top!.

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon and all related characters don't belong to me, but
to
the talented Naoko Takeuchi. May God bless you Naoko-sama!. (At least I
do!!, ^_^).

    ---------------------------------------------------------------------
Name: 'The truth about Ami', chapter 7.
Author: Cony
E-mail adress: rubi@riemann.mat.puc.cl
Rated: PG-13. (some violence and a lemon insinuation)
        Stuff at bottom.

Reiko stood up, and started looking around for a way to enter the factory
unnoticed. "Hiroshi-san, I believe that if we go to the next corner, we'll
be able to climb up the stairs and enter". "Reiko, look. You're staying
here. I'm going to check". His answer was something she had never expected
to hear. "What?". She was too stunned to say anything else. "You're not
coming. It's too dangerous". "Too dangerous?. Are you out of your mind?".
"No. I'm serious, you're not going". Reiko stopped her listening, and moved
closer to him. She stood by his side, with all her 16 years of living
irradiating experience and a bit of annoyance. "Why?. You think I'm not
good enough?". Hiroshi ws completely serious, his forehead showing a deep
concern. "You're excellent. But this isn't for you". "Not for me?. Are you
crazy?. You trained me. I suffered. I graduated. And now, when we're about
to be accepted into the elite group, you want me to stay behind because you
think it's too dangerous?".

As she talked, her voice was becoming louder, her annoyance being replaced
with anger. Hiroshi quickly brought a hand to her mouth, and another to her
shoulder, and forced her to sank back into the floor. He sat down too.
Reiko's eyes were flaring, and had Hiroshi not being better trained than
she was, he surely would have felt fear. "Reiko. Listen. As your sensei,
I'm ordering you to stay here". She janked his hand off her mouth
violently, and said, her cheeks wearing a bit of flush because of her
excitement. "You're not my sensei anymore, remember?". Because she couldn't
yell, her voice was a sizzling whisper, the one we only use when we're
really angry, but can't let that feeling free.

He was beginning to get annoyed too. He never thought she would put up such
a fight. He knew she was as stubborn as a mule, but she had never used it
against him. "Reiko, stop it. You_are_not_coming". "Wanna fight for it?"
she answered, ready to fight with her own teacher if necessary, to prove
him she was worth. Hiroshi then lost his patience, and didn't even think of
what he was saying. "Don't you see I care too much about you to put you in
certain death?". He's voice *and* statement hit Reiko hard, making her open
her eyes widely and loose her concentration completely. Was it her
imagination or Hiroshi had just said he loved her?. She supported herself
on the wall, pressing her back on it. , his voice echoed in
her head over and over again, every time awakening feelings she had kept
hidden for so long.

Meanwhile, Hiroshi was trying to deal with his own feelings. . Pity for him, the startled look on Reiko's
face was unmistakeable. "I . . . I . . . Oh, God, I can't handle it
anymore!. I don't care about the consecuences!", his voice was low, but
loud enough for anyone in a radium of three meters to hear. He stood up and
grabbed Reiko's hand. He lifted her, and ended staring at each other.
"Listen Reiko, I know that what I am about to do goes against every rule
we've learnt, but I don't care anymore. I . . . - he hesitated, not knowing
how to say. Then, he decided for the simplest way - I love you,
Reiko-chan!!".

His voice died, and silence set it's heavy presence on them. A weird
thought crossed Reiko's head. Silence can be very uncomfortable. Love?.
That was something she had almost forgotten about. Though sometimes at
night, she would sigh and hug her pillow, as her heart begged for comfort
on a firm chest it had rested on once . . . His hope was slowly disolving
into despair, as he saw Reiko wasn't answering. She just kept staring at
him, eyes open wide. . A light
movement by his side made him turn around. Reiko was trying to speak. Her
mouth was moving up and down, but no sound came from her lips. The surprise
had closed her mind, and with that, her abbility to talk.

Hiroshi leaned closer, but she just kept staring at him. She looked into
his eyes, not knowing what to say. At last, she found her brains, and
manged to utter some words. "I . . . I . . .", her words were incoherent.
She was clearly too surprised to speak. Hiroshi loved her?. It seemed like
one of those dreams she had had lately, where she saw herself and him
married, with kids, or just walking around a park as an engaged couple. It
just couldn't be!. All these years, crying because of the fate she had
chosen, because the man she loved didn't feel for her anymore than he felt
for the friends he didn't have, had been a complete loss of time?. The
thought caused her to feel the uncontrollable urge to laugh. It was hard to
hold, and she couldn't. A giggle left her mouth, and her body was shook by
the energy she couldn't let go on her laughing.

She giggled more and more, tears starting to form on her eyes, as the
result of how funny it felt, and how happy she was. Hiroshi just stared at
her wide eyed. Was she realy laghing about him?. It just seemed so alien . .
. . she was laughing, just when he had just (by mistake, but anyhow, he had
done it) declared his love for her?. Annoyence, mixed with a bit of anger
boiled in him. She was about to scold her right there and then when she
stopped. Just like that. Everything was silent, as both of them reamined
quiet. A strange thought crossed Reiko’s mind. . So, she kept thinking, it’s true
that your mind doesn’t work well when you need it the most, specially if
you’ve just received an emotional shock. She couldn’t think of what to say.
Declare to him?. It was so . . . she couldn’t think of a word that could
explain how she felt about telling him bluntly about her feelings. Play the
all stuffed up and offended girl?. It just didn’t go with her, and besides,
Hiroshi already knew how to see through her acting. What choice did that
leave her?. Nothing else but to show her surprise.

And that came out with a: "I never knew . . .". Her voice trailed off, as
she couldn’t think of anything else to say. Everything she was feeling
right now was represented in those three simple words. Funny, she thought.
Poets and men in general say a girls heart is the most misterious of all
misteries, and that no one can understand it, but I’ve been able to express
everything I’m going through using three simple every-day use words.
Meanwhile, Hiroshi was thiking about what she had just said. He
whispered: "Never?. I thought I was pretty obvious some times". Though this
was said more to him than to her, she heard it anyway. "Yeah. Several times
I was sure you had feelings for me, but I thought they were tricks of my
mind. That I was seeing what I wanted to see . . .". Inmediatly, he snapped
out of his reverie, as her words sank deeply into his heart. "Reiko . . .
that means . . .".. She smiled sadly at him, and said, nodding: "Yes. You
silly man. You never noticed how much I love you?. Why do you think I
didn't quit?. Because I liked this?. Fool. It was because of you. Seeing
you always makes my day shine, no matter how many dark clouds are there in
the sky. Every night, I would think of you . . . of your beautiful eyes,
your silky hair . . . doing that helped me to sleep . . . your image always
hunted my demons away. But now . . . it's too late for us. We can't. Not
now". She quieted, leaving a bittersweet taste in Hiroshi's mouth. She had
said she loved him, but had declared with such a final voice that there was
no chance for them that he couldn’t help but to grab her shoulders and say,
a little louder that he would’ve liked to: "Reiko, don’t tell me you’ll
just give up!. Of course we can do something!".

"What?. They’ll never let us be together. You know that a situtation
like that could jeopardize any mission. And I can’t continue hiding my
emotions . . . not now that I’ve told you how I feel . . .". She looked at
the floor, hiding her gaze from him. Hiroshi was stunned. Was this the girl
he knew?. The one he loved?. The one who had saved his life countless
times?.
He was about to make her see that they could find a way out, when he
noticed something that almost stopped his heart from beating. While she
still looked to the floor, a tear of shinning crystal was falling to the
ground, wetting it with it’s precious load. That single tear, the one she
had shed for them, although just been one, was enough for Hiroshi to
realise that she was sad enough to cry . . . to cry for real . . . and to
cry for them.

A plan began forming on his mind. It was almost crazy, but that was
their specialty . . . to make out of this world looking plans to work . . .
and to work well. He knew that what he was thinking was unfair, but if it
could make her happy, it was enough for him. He now understood that Reiko
hated this way of living. That she would give anything to get out of it . .
.
anything *but* what he was thinking. So, he left her out of the descision.
He took it by himself. He would go all the way with his plan, and at last,
he would make her happy. It would hurt, but she would be free. Though that
couldn’t be said for him . . . but that was a matter he didn’t care about
at this time. He was completly overloaded with love-emotions, and they were
controlling his body, *and* his mind.He would do anything for her, and was
about to prove it.

Slowly, he reached for her cheeks, and made her look up. She didn’t
put any resistence up, she just let him do whatever he pleased. Her eyes
were
teary and glassy, and she was bitting her lip, in vain trying to avoid
her tears from falling. Her lips quivered, and sadness was so evident on
her face, Hiroshi’s heart ached in need to help her. His voice became
softer, and
very tender, and while he spoke, he was brushing her tears away with his
finger tips: "Reiko-chan, listen. Don’t worry. Please don’t cry. We’ll find
a way out of this. Trust me, Ok?". She sniffled, and moved her face up and
down, as a sad smile reappeared in her lips. "What?. Why are you smiling?",
asked him, wondering if he had said something foolish. "It’s just that . . .
Reiko-chan . . . sounds so good on your lips . . . much better that the -san
you always called me . . . . besides, that’s something I have always wanted
you to say . . .".

He smiled too, and leaned closer to her, until their noses were touching.
He whispered, looking at her straight into her eyes: "Reiko-chan, I love
you". Her eyes inmediatly lighted up, and a grin, this time of happiness,
formed on her mouth. "Hiroshi-chan, I love you too", she whispered back,
gently rubbing their noses together. He felt so relieved of hearing her
happy again that his resolution almost vanished from his mind, but the soft
weight the needle he was carrying on his arm was enough for him to remain
set on his descision.
Hiroshi then closed the gap that separated them, and kissed her softly on
the lips. Reiko inmediatly closed her eyes, as the gentle preassure of
Hiroshi’s lips completely invaded her. This was the moment she had always

expected to experience. The one she had always dreamt about . . . the one
she had wished so much for . . . and to her complete happiness, it was
happening just now. She was in heaven, as she let her hands roam on his
hair, ruffling it, and the moving down to massage his neck. This was her
first kiss, and for her was a new and thrilling event. He wasn’t much
behind of entering heaven too. Ever since she had met her, he had longed to
to kiss those butterfly pink rose lips, and now he was doing it. As he had
expected, they were as soft as petals, and his own lips lingered to stay
there forever.

He felt her hands on his neck, and couldn’t avoid to reflex her actions.
He carresed her back, slowly but firmly bringing her to him. Through the
cloth fabric he felt her back, and wondered how soft her skin was, and if
it was as marvelous as the kiss he was feeling. But, he also felt her
hidden mussles, the ones he had helped to develop, and the ones responsible
of her being there now, and not inside a coffin. He wondered how could he
had lived for over 19 years without her. She was so . . . so perfect. She
was perfect made for him. As if they were the sea . . . water can’t move
without the wind . . . and that was what she was . . . the water . . .. He
smiled for himself, as he thought about the comparison he had just made.
She was a lot like water, now that he thought of it. Appart from the
natural hair color, she was impulsive, sudden and most of all, never
dominated. He had seen as she disliked the orders they were given, but
accepted them anyway. He had discovered long ago she prefered acting by her
own orders, not the one others gave her.

Orders?. That word brought his train of thought to an abrupt halt. What had
he been doing?. He was such a fool. He had forgotten all about his plan.
And he needed to act quick, because she would never be as distracted as
now. His heart ached, as he made himself contract his arm, so that the
syringe he had there went to his right hand. Reiko was oblivious to all of
this, literally walking on a cloud field. He closed his eyes tighter, and
slowly brought the needle up. , was what he thought, while he quickly brought the needle down, and
stabbed it in her back. Since he was hugging her, he inmediatly felt as she
stiffened when the tip entered her. He stopped kissing her, and brought his
mouth to her ear, where he whispered: "I’m so sorry, Reiko-chan. I told
you, this is too dangerous for you. I don’t want you to die. Please forgive
me".

He couldn’t bare to look at her in the eyes, he feared he would repent
of what he had just done. Reiko’s hands were tense on his neck, and he
heard a low croak leaving her lips: "Wh . . . why?". The sedative was
acting quickly, but she was fighting it’s effects with everything she had.
Even Hiroshi, knowing how strong and how much she could bear was surprised
to see she still hadn’t fallen unconscious. Appart from the question her
tone carried, it also had something, a plea. She was pleading him to look
at her. He knew that this maybe was the last time he could see her, so he
retreated from her shoulder, and supported her with his arms, as he looked
at her right into those botomless pits of blue she had for eyes.

"Because this is the best for you. I know that inside the building there’s
a trap, a deadly one, and I don’t want you to die. If I go alone, and they
catch me, you’ll be able to escape while I’m there. Besides, if the agency
finds a body and a few ashes around, they’ll suppose it was both of us, and
they’ll leave you alone". Reiko’s hazed eyes flared to life as her clouded
mind understood what he meant. "Hi . . . Hiroshi . . . don’t . . . don’t go
. . . ple . . . please". Her voice was subsiding more and more, as the
sedative was at last taking it’s toll. "I’m sorry, love, but I can’t let
you go with me. The sedative I gave you will put you unconcious for three
or four hours. I’m sorry, you don’t know how much. It’s just too
dangerous". "Don’t . . . die . . . I . . . I love . . . I love you . . .
please . . . stay . . . with . . .". Her eyes kept closing and re-opening
again, as she fought with all her strengh the urge to sleep she was
feeling. She lazily shook her head, as her senses were now completely
clouded and almost gone by the effects of the sedative. This seemed to give
her a bit more of power, and she opened her eyes fully and looked at him
straight: "Stay with me. Don’t . . . go . . . We’ll return . . . some other
time . . . we’ll hide this . . . no one will know . . . please . . . stay
Hi . . . Hiroshi".

Hiroshi was still supporting her, and as she heard her pleas, he felt an
uncontrolable need of hugging her one last time. He did, embracing her
inside his strong arms. She spoke again, this time, her voice trembling as
she realised she was going to loose him. "You . . . you smell . . . smell
like . . . like the forest . . . have I ever told you that, Red
Lightning?". He smiled, and brought her head to his own. "No. It’s the
first time, but I’ll remember it forever, Blue Thunder". She smiled sadly,
her lips barely forming a crescent moon. "Si . . . silly. Ta . . . take
care. I . . . I lo . . . I love you". The battle was already lost, but she
kept fighting, not ready yet to fall into unconsciousness, and to let him
leave without a final look. Her eyelids moved quickly, as she tried to
clear her view, wich was by seconds coming cloudier and cloudier, by the
effect of the sedative *and* the tears coming out of them.

She looked at him deeply, memorizing every inch of his face . . . his
hair, his loose bangs carresing her face, bringing to her a bit of comfort,
his eyes . . . full of sadness and love . . . his mouth . . . ( at this
point she lifted a very weak hand, and carresed his lips with trembling
fingers) . . . his lips, which she had kissed just some moments ago . . .
his cheeks, his nose, everything was recorded into her mind. He then
brushed his nose with her’s, as she had previously done, and whispered: "I
love you too, Reiko-chan. Never forget that". He kissed her again, this
time more fiercely; he kissed her with everything he could . . . he kissed
her with the need of never leaving her, of the sorrow he felt, of the
despair he tried to deny . . . and then, with a low sigh, Reiko’s hand fell
to her side, and her head left Hiroshi’s tender grip, and finished hanging
to his left, in an arc which if it wasn’t such a bad moment, Hiroshi’s
heart would’ve had melt.

His heart and whole body screamed in pain, as he felt an emptiness he
had only felt when he hadn’t met Reiko, and that she had filled since he
met her . . . . Then, he picked her up, carried her some meters away, and
hidded her behind a semi-fallen wall. He put her delicately on the floor,
and arranged her clothes carefully. He looked at her, and marveled at her
beauty. . He leaned forward, and kissed her
again,
softly this time. He longed so much for her eyes to open, for her to look at
him lovingly as she had done before . . . for her to touch his hair . . .
with just one last look at her sky-blue eyes would be enough . . . one last
look . . . just one . . . He snapped out of his thinking, as he realised he
was being a fool.

Reiko was safe, and that was what mattered. Nothing else. He stood up, and
gave one last look at his beloved, sleeping peacefully on the floor, her
chest going up and down, as her breathing was constant and precise.
. He walked away,
leaving everything he cared for behind . . .

To be continued . . .

Sigh . . . ;_; let us cry together . . . isn't this so sweet?. We're all
gonna get cavities!. Well, told you about the kleenex alert . . .

What do you think?. Tell me about it, your opinion is the most important
thing to me. According to what you say, is how the story goes on, so . . .
if you want anything special to happen, just write to me, and I'll see what
I can do . . . after all, the customer is always right!.

Disclaimer: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon and all related characters belong to
Naoko Takeuchi, the goddes responsible for this fic. All the other
characters
belong to me.

    Source: geocities.com/tokyo/shrine/1721